To help you avoid becoming another statistic, we've
highlighted some of the most commons causes of regret among the
moms surveyed:

'It's too commonly used'

While studies have shown that people with common names are
more
likable and more likely to be hired, a quarter of the moms
surveyed said they regret not giving their kids more unique
names. If you're considering naming your child James or Mary, you
may have to weigh your future happiness against theirs.

'It just doesn't feel right'

When writer Kelcey Kintner's daughter was a month old,
Kitner writes on her blog "The
Mama Bird Diaries" that she looked down at her
daughter and thought, "This baby is absolutely, definitely
not a Presley." Convinced that she and her husband had picked the
wrong name, she eventually changed it to "Summer" — and she
couldn't be happier about her decision.

Kintner's story of just knowing your kid has the wrong name isn't
that uncommon. Of the moms surveyed by Mumsnet, 21% say they
regretted their name choice for this very reason.

'I have never liked it — I was pressured into using it'

When it comes to important life decisions, everyone has an
opinion. Sadly, outside pressure when it comes to baby naming is
a real thing — just look to the scores of parenting forum posts
with questions like, "How do I tell my mom we're naming the baby
after my mother-in-law?" as proof. Perhaps unsurprisingly,
then, 20% of moms who regret their child's name say the were
pressured into giving it.

Some of the less common reasons — but reasons nonetheless — for
baby-name regret include:

"It's not distinctive enough" (11%)

"It causes him/her problems with spelling/pronunciation" (11%)

"Everyone calls him/her by a shortened version of the name, which
I don't like" (6%)

"There's been a shift in public perception of the name since my
child was born" (3%)